By a narrow margin, the Murray soccer team just missed out on winning a state championship. But the Spartans have much to be proud of, putting together a 15-3 campaign and giving it their all in the Class 4A state championship game. 

Murray fell in the title match to Ridgeline, 4-3, in a game held May 23 at America First Field in Sandy. 

The Spartans were all tied up with Ridgeline at halftime with the scored deadlocked at 1-1, with Murray’s Preston Lawson scoring for his team. Ridgeline had two quick goals in the second half five minutes apart to put it up 3-1. It put Murray in a tough position, but the Spartans didn’t give up. Central defender Bentley Heath scored off a header. Then, just six minutes later, Murray tied the game at 3-3 when Abdul Shahur scored off a Joksan Arana assist. 

“We were so proud of our young men that they didn’t hang their heads,” assistant head coach Steve Christensen said. 

However, Ridgeline made a clutch play with just over a minute left in regulation, scoring off a rebound on a set play to clinch the championship win. 

“We needed to contain an excellent attack from Ridgeline, especially on set plays, which ultimately they made the plays in the box to take the win,” Christensen said. “Credit to Ridgeline, as they were the overall second seed and a great team.”

Despite the heartbreaking loss, Christensen and the staff were pleased with the team’s hard work and performance. Christensen was grateful for the support of parents, students, school officials and the community as a whole. 

“Some of the best moments [in the state tournament] were seeing the boys giving such tremendous effort on the field and having such solid support from their teammates on the bench,” he said. “This team liked to celebrate each other’s successes and played a fun brand of soccer. We also had ever-increasing community support from our administration and faculty, students, alumni and Murray supporters, and the team all were pleased and excited on how the community came together to support us throughout our playoff run. Murray is such a great place to live.”

Murray entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed having gone 12-2 during the regular season. The Spartans reached the finals despite not winning their region. That honor went to Layton Christian, which finished a game ahead of Murray in the league standings. Murray was 8-2 in region play, with both losses coming to Layton Christian. 

But the Spartans got their revenge on the Eagles in the playoffs. 

In the semifinals, May 21, Murray prevailed in overtime over Layton Christian by the count of 3-2. A goal from Shahur in the extra session sent the Spartans to the finals. Arana assisted on the goal with a beautiful pass to Shahur, who then beat a pair of defenders and scored just under the crossbar. Dillon Curtis and Carlos Nieto-Rosales also scored for Murray in the big win. 

“Despite losing twice to them in the regular season, our team rose to the challenge and played one of their best games of the season,” Christensen said. “The team was on a very high note with this win, though it was such a physical game, it took its toll.”

Nothing came easy for Murray in the state tournament. After securing a first-round bye, the Spartans defeated Mountain Crest at home, 4-3 on May 14. Curtis scored twice in the victory, with Shahur and Nieto-Rosales adding goals. Shahur and Nieto-Rosales also had assists, as did Axel Lopez. Two days later, Murray outlasted Dixie at home by the score of 2-1. Preston Lawson’s 70th-minute goal proved to be the game winner. Jacob Riches also scored for Murray, with Shahur and Lawson
getting assists. 

Many players stood out for Murray during the tournament. 

“The team wins and loses as a team, but we had a number of individual standouts in the different playoff games,” Christensen said. “Our midfield trio of Jason Adams, Preston Lawson (both juniors) and sophomore Ryan Diaz all stepped up their play, though each person played a vital role in our success.” 

The season as a whole was a memorable one for the Spartans. Barely missing out on winning the state championship was disappointing, but Murray proved to be one of the best teams in 4A. The team’s success, dedication and attitude is something Christensen and the staff will always remember. He said the players also excelled in the classroom and had great involvement from family and from the school. 

“Led by our captains, Kaden Coons and Jason Adams, this team was committed to their goals and worked hard in practices to improve individual skills, team cohesion and mentoring younger players,” he said. “Overall, it was a very unselfish team. It was great to see their personal growth as well as improvements on the field and in the classroom, with 31 players earning the HS Athletic Academic Award. That intelligence was definitely a strength that helped them play solid tactically with the game plan and make individual adjustments to help us improve in-game results. This year, we were also blessed with having awesome parental support, including a great senior night, weekly team dinners on the evenings before games and support at games. It was not unusual for us to have as many or more fans travel for our away games versus the home squads.”

Next season, Murray could be a contender once again. The team brings back several key players and has established a strong culture. 

“With a solid core of 10 underclassmen who had significant varsity time this year, we have high expectations to again be among the leaders for 2025,” Christensen said. λ